2 Size and Scale Scale: tells us the relationship between the distance on the map and the true distance on the surface of the Earth. Scale can be represented 3 different ways: –Local –Regional –Global

3 Scale

Scale is a powerful concept because: -Processes operating at different scales influence one another. - What is occurring across scales provides context for us to understand a phenomenon.

5 Be careful to make sure you have the correct unit. Many maps have both miles and kilometers How to use the Scale To calculate distance measure the distance on the map and then place on the scale to measure the true difference

6 Comparing maps of different scale Different maps need to show different levels of detail. Sometimes you need to show a lot detail for a small area, and sometimes you need to show little detail of a larger area. A Small-Scale Map shows a large area with small details. It is good for relative locations A Large-Scale Map shows a small area with large details. It is good for detailed looks at small areas

7 Map Scales The smaller the right hand number the larger the scale of the map 1:75000 is a more detailed map than 1: which is a small scale map

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9 Large-scale Small-scale

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What is true at one scale may not be true at a different scale. Beware the fallacy of absolute truth.